Dominican Republic trip makes lasting impact on students
March 28, 2018
Second-year Practical Nursing students Megan Grinnell and Katherine Coes.
A number of Georgian health and wellness students have the opportunity of a lifetime in April and May to help provide care and health education to those in dire need in the Dominican Republic.
Two separate groups travel to two rural areas, Consuelo and San Jose De Ocoa.
These trips, which Georgian has organized since 2000, have a huge emotional and professional impact on students. The trips also broaden their cultural awareness and understanding of the implications of poverty on health. Hundreds of Georgian students have participated in this experience over the years and benefitted from the opportunity.
“This trip is an incredible opportunity for students to expand their knowledge and beliefs, outside of our Westernized thinking and day-to-day lives,” says Katherine Coes, a second-year Practical Nursing student. “As a society, I think it’s important to recognize there’s a cultural and economic difference between places, even here in Canada. When we begin to recognize this, we can help make changes and become us, instead of me or you.”
The Georgian group travels each year in partnership with Rayjon Share Care, a registered non-profit organization located in Sarnia.
Interprofessional care is given to residents in rural communities in several ways:
- community clinics
- working alongside nurses and doctors at the local hospital
- home visits
- visits to long-term care homes
- visits to an orphanage
Students provide overall health assessments, wound care, respiratory care, musculoskeletal care, pain and parasite medication and more. They also visit local schools and provide much needed supplies and education to children.
The amount of people seen by the students is staggering. In the first two weeks of the San Jose de Ocoa trip last year, close to 2,000 people received care.
Each student and faculty member covers the cost of the trip personally and is responsible for fundraising and collecting needed supplies such as medications, vitamins, eyeglasses, sunglasses, wound care supplies, dental supplies, school supplies and more.